Figures That Speak - (Modern Intellectual and Political History of the Middle East) by Matthew Detar (Paperback)

About the Book

"'Figures That Speak' builds a critical analysis of a vocabulary of 'figures' in Turkish public discourse that structure public thought and define the possibilities of political action: religion, the minority, the founding father (Atatèurk), the military, and Europe. This unique focus on processes of representation and their circulation in public culture gives readers a new perspective on the effects of the way that contemporary politicians, journalists, academics, and the public all speak about international politics"--

Book Synopsis

If the surface of Turkish politics has changed dramatically over the decades, the vocabulary for sorting these changes remains constant: Europe, Islam, minorities, the military, the founding father (Atatürk). This familiar vocabulary functions as more than a set of descriptors of institutions, phenomena, or issues to debate in public. These five primary "figures" emerge from national identity, public discourse, and scholarship about Turkey to represent Turkish history and political authority while also shaping history and political authority. These figures unify disparate phenomena into governable categories and index historical relations of power that define Turkish politics. As these concepts circulate, they operate as a shorthand for complex networks and histories of authority, producing and limiting ways of knowing Turkish modernity, democracy, and political culture. These figures not only are spoken and discussed in public, but they also produce the context into which they are projected, in a sense speaking on their own. Figures That Speak explores the diverse mobilization and production of history and power in the primary figures that circulate in discourse about Turkey.

Review Quotes

Figures that Speak is an important account of the rhetoric of nationalism in Turkey that also breaks new ground in understanding figural reasoning and representation.

-- "Craig Calhoun, Arizona State University"

Figures that Speak is an impressive contribution to the study of political rhetoric in the making of Turkish nationalism. DeTar presents the compelling argument that several key discursive figures--religion, minority, the military, the founding father, and Europe--have structured the possibilities and limits of nationalist political speech. The book should be read by anyone interested in the rhetorical underpinnings of modern politics.-- "Kabir Tambar, Stanford University"

Figures That Speak focuses on nodal points in history to provide insightful empirical excursions into political discourse beyond ideological and regime changes. The author succeeds, bringing to life the notions of nationalism, the state, military, religion, and minorities, making them speak to us.-- "Nilüfer Göle, Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales, Paris"

Brings new texture and complexity to a field that all-too-often assumes that the particular rhetorical histories and practices of the United States are universal.-- "Christa Olson, University of Wisconsin"

About the Author

Matthew deTar is assistant professor of rhetoric and culture in the School of Communication Studies at Ohio University.